Non-Solicitation Agreements

Similar to a non-compete, a non-solicitation agreement is a form of a restrictive covenant, which is a clause in an employment contract setting out the rights and obligations of an employee post departure.

Commonly, non-solicit agreements attempt to prohibit a departing employee from actively soliciting the clients of their former employer.

Also, similar to non-compete agreements, non-solicit agreements are viewed as restraints of trade. For this reason, they need to be carefully drafted to be enforceable, although they have a greater likelihood of being upheld than non-compete agreements.

Here is an example of a non-solicit clause in an employment contract:

Non-Solicitation of Customers: The Employee shall not, either during his or her employment or for a period of twelve (12) months following the termination of his or her employment for any reason including resignation, directly or indirectly contact or solicit any customers of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates with whom he or she has dealt during the eighteen (18) months prior to his or her termination, for the purpose of selling to those customers any products or services which are the same as or substantially similar to, or in competition with, the products or services sold by the Company or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates at the time of the Employee's termination.

Read our employment law articles about Non-Solicitation Agreements for more information.